Rooppur Cost $18.23b With Interest

EB Report

Considering the interest on the credit amount of $11.38 billion, Bangladesh has to repay an additional $6.84 billion for materialising the Rooppur nuclear power plant, resulting the total cost to raise up to $18.23 billion, claimed the government officials. It suggests that, one-third of the total investment would be spent to pay the interests only.

The Economic Relations Division officially revealed this on Monday at a view-exchange meeting of secretaries of the ministries concerned. Science and Technology minister Yeafes Osman, Prime Minister’s Principal Secretary Md Abul Kalam Azad was present at that meeting.

Russia is about to invest $11.38 billion for the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant which is 90 percent of the total estimated cost $12.65 billion. Bangladesh has already signed the $11.38 billion credit deal with the Russian Federation.

Russia will provide the loan at an interest rate of six months Libor plus 1.75 percent per annum, but it will never cross over 4 percent. Bangladesh will pay off the loan within 28 years with a 10-year grace period. The very first instalment of this credit has to be paid on 15th March of 2027.

Calculating the interest rate, time and principal amount it was disclosed at that meeting that the total amount of interest will be somewhat around $6.84 billion raising the total cost from so-called $12.65 billion to $18.23 billion. However, officials of that meeting claimed that this figure won’t cross $20 billion by any means.

Radioactive wastages are about to be handed over to the Russian authority as they would recycle and reuse those as fuel, said the officials. Bangladesh doesn’t have a much economical prospect on exporting the nuclear wastages, remarked the Science Secretary Md Sirajul Haque Khan. He also claimed that the government is looking for another suitable site for a probable new nuclear power plant.

Russian state-owned Rosatom will build this Nuclear Power plant for Bangladesh, which will have a total capacity of 2,400MW with two separate VVER unit. The first unit of this plant is likely to be in operation by the year of 2023 and the second one is to be operational by the October of 2024. Each of the units will have a capacity of generating 1,200 MW of electricity with a lifespan of roughly 80-90 years.